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Thursday, July 25, 2013

Colin Devlin Found Dead in Pennsylvania

The award-winning owner of several popular Brooklyn
restaurants was found dead in his car at a Pennsylvania cemetery Thursday
afternoon from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, a law-enforcement
official said.

NYPD had been searching for Colin Devlin, 42 years old, since he disappeared Wednesday
following a business meeting in which he learned his restaurants were suffering
from financial troubles, the official said.

Pennsylvania State Police found Mr. Devlin dead in his car
near a cemetery in Fogelsville, Pa., from what appeared to be a self-inflicted
gunshot wound, the official said. Police have recovered the gun.

There was no
note in the car. It will be up to the local medical examiner to determine an
exact cause of death.

Police say Mr. Devlin was last seen around 2:30 p.m.
Wednesday when he left his home on Devoe Street in the Williamsburg neighborhood.

Mr. Devlin, a Philadelphia native, is the co-owner of DuMont
and DuMont Burger, restaurants that are seen as pioneers in Brooklyn’s
farm-to-table movement.

Mr. Devlin’s wife told investigations that her husband
became depressed after a business meeting, the official said.

“He had received news about being declined for a business
loan, and his businesses were in financial decline,” the official said.

The official said Mr. Devlin’s wife became concerned for her
husband’s welfare and learned of a text message
at 4:18 p.m. Thursday that asked her to take care of their children.

She told police that Mr. Devlin might be heading to
Pennsylvania, where they have a second home and where he has access to a .38
caliber revolver that was stored in the home’s safe, the official said.

Police were able to determine Mr. Devlin’s car entered the
Holland Tunnel at 3:15 p.m. Wednesday, the official said.

The official said investigators determined that Mr. Devlin’s
phone was off line and no money had been stolen from any of his businesses.

Mr. Devlin had recently been forced to close Dressler, the
most upscale of his restaurants last month, after he was not able to come to
terms with the landlord on a lease renewal, according to a message on the
restaurant’s website.